Co-op ready to close out Umoja in basketball play-offs

Former champions Co-operative Bank will be seeking to qualify for the men’s basketball Premier League play-offs semi-final when they take on Umoja in their quarter-final Game Two at Strathmore University, Madaraka Saturday.

Co-op Bank, who are seven-time league champions, are 1-0 up after beating Umoja 57-41 in their best-of-three series quarter-final opener last weekend.

Umoja, who are making their debut in the play-offs after finishing sixth in the regular season with 34 points, must rise to the occasion and avenge their defeat in Game One to remain in the running.

A win for Umoja will force the decisive Game Three on Sunday.

Aggressive centre-forward James Mwangi, Joshua Kisali and basket hungry, stylish shooting point guard Titus Musembi will be the banker’s chief weapons.

”We cannot underrate our opponents at this stage of the competition and we have trained hard to end the series 2-0 because it will be risky to allow a 1-1 tie which will motivate Umoja to complicate our chances of progressing’’ said Co-op Bank coach Carey “T9” Oketch .

Umoja was impressive in their first Premier League season and having gone down 41-57 to Co-op Bank in play-offs Game One due to inexperience, will fancy pulling of an upset against their illustrious opponents.

FIXTURES

Saturday"

ANU v Footprints (9am), Barclays Bank v Eldonets (10am), Strathmore University v Lakeside (12pm), Equity Bank v Eagle Wings (1.30pm), Umoja v Co-op Bank (3pm), Blades v USIU-A Tigers (4.30pm)
Sunday:

Lakeside v Strathmore University (9am), Footprints v ANU (1.0.30am), Blazers v Emyba (12noon), Eldonets v Barclays Bank (1.30pm), Eagle Wings v Equity Bank (3pm), Co-op Bank v Umoja (4pm)